


Something Red

by coraxes



Category: The Bright Sessions (Podcast)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon, M/M, Podfic Available, Vampires, it's not a dark fic tho, literally fluff with fangs, rated for language
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-06
Updated: 2016-11-06
Packaged: 2018-08-29 08:38:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,737
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8482765
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/coraxes/pseuds/coraxes
Summary: Maybe if it was just the sadness, Caleb would be able to ignore Adam.  People are depressed all the time, right?  Adam’s not even the only one in his grade.  But he’s the only one who Caleb can’t get his fucking feelings out of.  
“The sadness is the biggest thing,” Caleb says.  “And the—the other thing, it’s like.  It’s always there but all the sadness is on top of it, so it’s hard to tell unless he gets really pissed.  And then there’s this anger and this feeling like he really wants to hurt someone.”





	

**Author's Note:**

> what the fuck is my life anymore
> 
> if u wanted like an in-depth view of vampires in tbs-verse, it's not here. see tags. written in like an hour and not beta'd.
> 
> **EDIT:** [annabelle_myrtille](http://archiveofourown.org/users/annabelle_myrtille/pseuds/annapod) made a podfic [here!](http://archiveofourown.org/works/10228304) It's great and you should check it out if that's your thing.

Maybe if it was just the sadness, Caleb would be able to ignore Adam.  People are depressed all the time, right?  Adam’s not even the only one in his grade.  But _he’s_ the only one who Caleb can’t get his fucking feelings out of. 

“The sadness is the biggest thing,” Caleb says.  “And the—the other thing, it’s like.  It’s always there but all the sadness is on top of it, so it’s hard to tell unless he gets really pissed.  And then there’s this anger and this feeling like he really wants to _hurt_ someone.”

Dr. Bright’s eyes narrow.  Tendrils of worry sink into Caleb’s chest, and he fidgets until he manages to separate her feelings from his own.  Dr. Bright is usually pretty easy, but her concern and defensiveness are hard to shake sometimes.  “Do you believe you are in danger from him?  Or that anyone else might be?”

Caleb rubs his nose, frowns.  “No.  Whatever he’s got, he’s handling it.  I just wish I knew why.  I’ve never felt something like that before.”

It comes and goes without reason, spiking sometimes even when Adam’s just walking through the halls.  Once Caleb feels it like a slap from across the hall, hears Adam running out of the classroom.  Later he finds out someone managed to cut themselves during a dissection lab, and that was when Adam ran.  Jason’s the guy who tells him, and he laughs about Adam wimping out around blood—

But Adam hadn’t felt sick or upset or scared.  He felt like he really fucking wanted something.

Which, really, what the hell is Caleb supposed to do with that?

\--

Caleb learns to deal with it after a while.  It’s more of the weirdness of being around Adam.  His superpower malfunctions around him and his Snow Patrol and his fucking smartass grin.

(On his list of things Caleb will never, ever tell anyone, the way Adam’s smartass smile makes him feel that weirdass butterfly thing is near the top.  But it’s like.  It means Adam’s happy, and proud of himself, and also it’s really cute and he has just one dimple that shows up when he smiles and—okay.  Anyway.)

But sometimes it gets really hard to ignore.  Especially in moments where it has no reason to show up.  Like when they’re sitting on Adam’s bed doing homework, and Adam’s super tired and sort of slumps over onto Caleb’s shoulder?  (He’s actually really tired, not just faking to have an excuse to touch him.  Not that Caleb would mind, probably, but whatever.) 

And then all of a sudden it’s there.  That terrifying, red, _violent_ feeling, spiking so hard Caleb can feel it in his skin, under his teeth.  Like he wants to rip someone’s throat out.

He looks down, and Adam’s watching him the way a snake watches a mouse.

“Um,” says Caleb.

Guilt hits Caleb like a punch.  “I gotta go,” says Adam, and jumps up. 

The emotion is so strong and focused Caleb can just sit there with his eyes closed and feel Adam running down to the basement, where it spikes again and then fades.  When Adam comes back up, he’s carrying a bowl of popcorn and the violent feeling is in the background again.  It’s drowned out by—guilt?  No, shame; he gets them mixed up sometimes. 

“I got hungry,” he says, but even if Caleb wasn’t an empath he’d know that was bullshit.

(Dr. Bright: “Are you sure you aren’t just feeling, ah, lust?”

Oh my God, Dr. Bright, yes he’s fucking sure.  He’s seventeen years old and he knows what someone else’s horniness feels like.  Not that Adam _isn’t_ feeling that, too, but it’s not the same at all and can they _please_ talk about Caleb’s maybe-a-crush thing again, _Jesus_.)

\--

“Are you okay?” Caleb blurts out after they have another almost-moment ruined by Adam’s whatever-it-is.

Adam looks up from the book he’s been staring at since his last trip to the basement.  He’s weirdly red from his nose to the tips of his ears and down his neck.  It looks like a blush, but that redness seems to stick around for a while after his basement trips, especially since he’s so pale most of the time.

(Maybe Caleb just stares at Adam’s face too much.

Maybe he kinda wants to see how far down Adam’s blush goes.

Anyway.)

“What do you mean?”  Adam’s face is calm, but Caleb can feel anxiety under the surface.  Superpower one, Adam’s poker face zero.

Caleb scratches his nose because there’s no way to say _sometimes you kind of feel like you want to murder me whenever we’re about to kiss_.  “Am I making you uncomfortable or whatever?  Sometimes you’re kind of jumpy.” 

Adam looks up at the ceiling.  “I don’t want to make things weird.  I mean, you know I’m gay.”  He glances over at Caleb, and Caleb nods, grins a little, because _duh._ Like, straight guys don’t call Tom Hardy hot.  “I don’t want to gross you out, or whatever.”

Which totally does not answer Caleb’s question, but he can feel the truth behind the words, too.  There’s this little bit of shame in Adam every time he looks at Caleb or any other cute guy.  Caleb doesn’t get it himself, but maybe that’s because he doesn’t know or care what the fuck he is.  “You aren’t going to gross me out.  Don’t worry about it, do what you want,” he says.

Adam tilts his head and swallows, which, ah. 

Yeah.  Definitely a difference between secondhand lust and whatever else Adam has going on.

Point is: something weird is happening, and Caleb still has no idea what it is.

\--

Maybe a little bit of an idea.

“So uh, this is a dumb question.”

Dr. Bright gives him one of her indulgent smiles.  She’d make a pretty good teacher, he thinks sometimes.  She has a way of making him feel less stupid.  “I’d be happy to answer anyway.”

“Since superpowers are a thing, are vampires a thing too?”  Just to cover all his bases: “And, you know, werewolves or witches or whatever.”

Dr. Bright’s smile grows wider.  He can feel actual amusement, and a little bit of something else too—sadness?  Wistfulness?  _Nostalgia,_ right, okay.  He gets that from her more than normal lately.  “You aren’t the first person to ask me that question.  But the answer is no.  So far as I am aware, no atypical abilities resemble vampires or werewolves.  Atypicals might be considered witches of a sort, I suppose, but not in the way I think you mean.”

“Alright,” says Caleb.  “I was just wondering.”

That’s one theory out.  Dr. Bright would know.

\--

So then he’s _pretty fucking freaked out_ when Adam says that no, actually, he _is_ a fucking vampire.

It’s after Caleb’s told him about his superpower and also his…crush, or whatever it is.  His Adam Thing.  They’re in Caleb’s room, sitting beside each other on the floor, and Adam says, “You said that you could tell I always wanted to hurt someone.”

What Caleb had actually said was, “You feel like you want to murder someone _all the goddamn time._ ”  But he was pissed when he said it, so he’s glad Adam’s not bringing that up.

“Uh, yeah,” says Caleb.  He can actually feel it a little bit now, but it’s in the background again.  Adam feels too _curious_ about his superpower, and a little relieved, and a little hopeful.  But also kind of nervous, too, now that they’re talking about Adam’s thing.

“I wouldn’t normally tell you this, but your life is already weird, so.  I’m a vampire.”

Caleb’s the sensitive type, so the first thing he says is, “What the _hell_.”

“You’re the guy with the superpower.  Why are you surprised?” asks Adam.

“Those aren’t—that’s different.  Dr. Bright told me they weren’t real.”

Adam shrugs, frowning, and Caleb feels a surge of irritation.  “Yeah, well, someone tell the fucker who bit me.”

“Do you have fangs?” Caleb blurts out.  He kinda—he’s spent a lot of time thinking about Adam’s mouth lately.  And Adam with fangs is a little cooler than he thought it would be.

“Sometimes I have fangs,” says Adam.  His eyes light up.  Caleb doesn’t need his empathy to know that Adam has wanted to show this to someone for a while.  He likes knowing more than anyone else in the room—sometimes it’s annoying, but most of the time it’s just fun.  He’s so fucking smart it blows Caleb’s mind.  “Do you want to see them?”

Caleb nods and Adam just closes his eyes for a second.  He bares his teeth and there they are, two inches long and needle-sharp.

Caleb leans forward and touches one, tongue between his teeth.

Heat rises in Caleb’s stomach.  The ache in his teeth actually makes sense now.  “Please don’t do that,” Adam hisses.  He pushes Caleb’s hand down, rests it on his knee.  The violent hunger ( _that’s_ what it was, Caleb finally fucking gets it) is still there, but there’s something else too.  Something a little more mutual.  And his face is still close to Adam’s and his hand is on Adam’s leg.  So he just goes for it.

He’d never—Caleb has kissed girls before, but even though they’d been into him he hadn’t really felt anything.  This is.  This is a lot different.  His other hand comes to rest on Adam’s other leg so he can lean into him, and Adam’s hand fists in Caleb’s hair, pulls him forward.  His nose bumps against Adam’s glasses and he laughs but it’s—it’s nice.  It’s awkward and sort of perfect.

Also, Adam really wants to eat him, but he seems to like kissing more.

After a while, though, Adam shoves him away.  He’s still got fangs but he’s grinning around them, which Caleb figures is a good sign, along with the happiness settled in his chest.  “What are we doing?” he asks.

“I mean.  I like you, and you like me, and we’re both really fucking weird?”  Caleb laughs.  It’s like his happiness and Adam’s happiness are making a loop, fizzling up through his gut like bubbles in pop.    “So do you want to be my boyfriend, maybe?”

Adam grins.  Caleb really, really wants to kiss that one dimple on the side of his face, so he does, and Adam fucking giggles and shoves his face away.  “Yeah.  Yeah, I do.”

**Author's Note:**

> this isn't explained in the fic bc i just wanted fluff but basically: atypicals are in a COMPLETELY DIFFERENT DIVISION from things like vamps/werewolves, which do both exist in the TBS verse. They're just mostly extinct. Dr. Bright wasn't on the need-to-know list for more ~magical~ beings.


End file.
